Equities in Canada’s biggest market were little changed on Wednesday, as bank stock declines offset gains in mining shares.
The S&P/TSX Composite Index struggled to a gain of 23.96 points to open Wednesday at 15,172.96
The Canadian dollar dropped 0.17 cents to 75.18 cents U.S.
Sears Canada is reportedly preparing to seek court protection against creditors in the coming weeks.
Stock in the once-mighty retailer tumbled 13 cents, or 16.3%, to 67 cents.
National Bank of Canada resumes coverage on Crius Energy Trust with an outperform rating.
Crius units acquired 10 cents each, or nearly 1%, to $10.24.
CIBC raised the price target on Enerflex Ltd. to $25.00 from $24.50. Enerflex shares picked up 19 cents, or 1.1%, to $17.05.
National Bank of Canada raised the rating on Spin Master to outperform from sector perform. Spin Master shares gained $1.16, or 3.2%, to $37.07.
ON BAYSTREET
The TSX Venture Exchange eked up 1.71 points to 771.80
Eight of the 12 TSX subgroups were positive, as materials and gold each surged 0.5%, while information technology gained 0.3%.
The four laggards were led by financials and consumer staples, each trailing yesterday’s close by 0.2%, while utilities were down 0.1%.
ON WALLSTREET
U.S. stocks traded mixed on Wednesday as oil prices tried to rebound from a sharp fall during the previous session.
The Dow Jones Industrials fell 14.72 points at the opening bell to 21,452.42, with Goldman Sachs contributing the most losses.
The S&P 500 recovered 0.99 points to 2,438.02, while energy fell 0.5% to cap gains.
The NASDAQ regained 22.61 points to 6,210.81.
Stocks have been on a tear this year, with the S&P rising more approximately 9%, largely led by information technology. The tech sector has jumped nearly 20% this year as shares of large-cap stocks in the space have risen sharply. Tech's rise has also boosted the NASDAQ composite, which is up 15% year to
In economic news, mortgage applications rose 0.6% as interest rates remained low. Existing homes sales data were due at 10 a.m. ET.
Oil was on track to post its worst first-half performance since 1997. Investors will watch closely new inventory data from the Energy Information Administration, which is set for release at 10:30 a.m. ET in New York.
Prices for the benchmark 10-year Treasury note slid, raising yields to 2.18% from Tuesday’s 2.16%. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Oil prices picked up eight cents to $43.59 U.S. a barrel
Gold prices gained 40 cents to $1,243.90 U.S. an ounce.
